It was the district sports meet. My foot still hadn’t healed (痊愈) from a(n)________injury. I had ______ whether or not I should attend the meet. But there I was, ______for the 3,000-meter run.

“Ready…set…” The gun popped and we were off. The other girls rushed ______ me. I felt ______ as I fell farther and farther behind.

“Hooray!” shouted the crowd. It was the loudest ______ I had ever heard at a meet. The first-place runner was two laps(圈)ahead of me when she crossed the finish line.

“Maybe I should ______, I thought as I moved on. ______, I decided to keep going. During the last two laps, I ran ______ and decided not to ______ in track next year. It wouldn’t be worth it, ______ my foot did heal.

When I finished, I heard a cheer--- ______than the one I’d heard earlier. I turned around and______, the boys were preparing for their race. “They must be cheering for the boys. ”

I was leaving ______ several girls came up to me. “Wow, you’ve got courage!” one of them told me.

“Courage? I just ______ a race!” I thought.

“I would have given up on the first lap,” said another girl. “We were cheering for you. Did you hear us?”

Suddenly I regained ______. I decided to ______ track next year. I realized strength and courage aren’t always ______ in medals and victories, but in the______we overcome(战胜). The strongest people are not always the people who win, ______ the people who don’t give up when they lose.

I opened the hotel curtains to find dark rainy streets. After training in nearly 100-degree weather in St. Louis, I wasn't _______ a rainy 55-degree day. However, it didn't _______because it was marathon day.

My group _______with ponchos (雨披) on. I took off the poncho around Mile 9 as the rain seemed less _______.

I was still energized at Mile 13, and supporters were still _______ us on. Not too long after Mile 20, I was feeling some _______ in my legs. I never stopped though. I just put my head up and _______ going. As Mile 22 passed, I _______ and I began to cry, but kept on moving. The view alongside was _______ and it kept my mind busy.

At the end of Mile 25, my body was beat. As I saw that finish line in the wind, I put all my__________into running for it. The__________said my name and made some careless Irish remarks that I can't remember, and I__________the line in total tiredness. Some staff__________me my marathon medal, bottled water, and helped me keep warm.

Traveling for my first marathon will be__________remembered. I could not have done this without the__________of my family, friends, Coach Rich, my teammates and my sister, who gave me the strength to__________. As Norman D. Vaughan, the surviving member of the Byrd Antarctic Expedition said, “Dream big and be __________ to fail. ”

I am enveloped by an instant sweet happiness before falling down in exhaustion. Hands held high, I_______ cross the finishing line, out of_______ . It's a deep and longed-for sense of_______ , coming from handling three sports in one and surviving to tell the sweaty tale. All around me people_______ because they’ve achieved something unforgettable, some smiling, some in tears.

_______still, there is the sense of purpose triathlon (铁人三项赛) offers. Running, swimming and cycling provide a(n)_________from existential anxiety as the demanding training schedules leave little_________for reflection on the     bigger life questions. Ali Hendry-Ballard, 47, first tried triathlon during a_______period in her life. "I really needed something_______to focus on while going through major life changes," she said, "Though I'd never been interested in ________, I started jogging and soon became fascinated. I started doing half marathons and very quickly________ myself training for a triathlon. There's something that________ all sides of my personality. I've never been in tune with my body, or felt so________ of both its strengths and its limitation."

For me too, triathlon has ________ an increased awareness of what is and isn't possible, physically and spiritually. I must fight against the________ of being left behind. The belief carried me through the course of any race that I can ________ whatever comes my way. It has helped me to become a ________ person. Triathlon takes every bit from its     devotees as much as it gives and yet, somehow, you end up giving even more than it________ . It's a greedy pastime and ________   determined types. Yet it's also a social, ________   hobby that can offer fresh chances to travel, experience and dream.